


in the little things

by kimikaami



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: 'x helps byleth thru grief' rite of passage fic, Angst, Comfort, F/M, mentions of Bernadetta, oh boy here we go - Freeform, short fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 08:35:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28468374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kimikaami/pseuds/kimikaami
Summary: “You seem to know what you’re doing with that cat,” Seteth said softly, not eager to disturb the cozy atmosphere. He leaned forward and rested his chin on the heel of his palm.Byleth nodded, scritching its very unhappy head. “We never stayed in one place for long, when I was small, but there were always strays wherever we ended up. I’ve always had a soft spot for them, I suppose.”
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth/Seteth
Comments: 3
Kudos: 37





	in the little things

**Author's Note:**

> aw geez
> 
> let's all pretend bernie's birthday happens after jeralt's death, yes? yes.

Seteth cast his line and sighed. He had caught very little today, even less than normal, and he was about a few minutes away from giving up.

He was just reeling in his line after another fruitless attempt when he heard a distant sound of...scuffling? Curious though he was, he dutifully continued reeling. Maybe if he ignored the problem, it would take care of itself?

The commotion only continued to grow louder, though, as Seteth stood and the edge of the dock, packing his things and appraising his meager yield for the afternoon. At the familiar _click_ of boot heels, he could ignore the impending disaster no longer. Sighing, he turned just in time to witness Professor Byleth streaking through the mess hall doorway and taking the steps into the small courtyard two at a time.

Sensing vibrations through the floorboards of the dock, Seteth dragged his baffled stare down to see a tiny black ball of...something, zipping towards him. Shocked, he nearly took a step backward into the water, but the thing mercifully came to a sudden halt halfway between him and solid ground.

Panting, Byleth came to the far end of the dock. Seteth often saw her jogging around the monastery barely breaking a sweat; this thing truly must have given her a run for her money. Perplexed, he wondered at how fearsome this creature must be, to perform such a feat.

The thing hissed. Ah. One of the monastery strays, a kitten.

Upon closer inspection, the thing was tiny, no more than a few months old. It was jet black, with long fur spiked along it’s back in defiance. Growls rose and fell low and its throat. The poor thing was clearly terrified and Seteth felt bad for it, despite himself.

“The fish-,” Byleth panted, hands on her knees in exhaustion. “Please, Seteth. I’ll pay you back later.”

Seteth blinked in confusion. Then- _oh_ \- he fetched the smallest fish he could find from his basket (which was not a difficult feat) and gently tossed it towards the cat. It looked warily between the two of them, but it was skinny and underfed under all that fluff and couldn’t resist. Slowly it crouched down and tucked in, eyes never leaving their forms, never completely trusting.

“What,” Seteth asked, “in the Goddess’ name, are you doing chasing a kitten around the monastery, of all things?”

“Well,” Byleth replied, slowly lowering her body and creeping towards it. “I uh-,” she trailed off, obviously more interested in catching her prey than providing him with an explanation. She was finally close enough to touch the kitten, but it had abandoned its fish in turn, focusing on intimidating the professor as best it could. Slowly Byleth extended her hand just close enough to let it sniff her. It did so cautiously, fur spiking yet again. Having nowhere to run, it reared on its hind legs to swipe at her hand. Byleth was too fast. She grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and pinned its body to her chest as kindly as she could.

Seteth gathered his things and followed Byleth to the steps where she took a seat. He followed suit.

“I’m ah, sorry about your fish. Really,” she said, doing her best to stop the cat from clawing her to death. Thank Seiros for her forearm guards.

Seteth chuckled and tilted his near-empty basket to give her a better look at its contents. “I’m sure whatever you catch will more than make up for it.”

She said nothing, but he could swear he saw the corners of her mouth turn up a little. It was a rare sight, one that made him glad to see.

“So, what were you doing, chasing strays around on your day off?” he questioned again.

“Well I,” she paused and took a breath. “I forgot Bernie’s birthday in the midst of everything and I thought she could use a friend.”

“Hmm,” he hummed. Seteth gave Byleth a once over as she pointedly ignored his gaze. There was more, he discovered, to her exhaustion past running all over the monastery. The bags below her eyes were dark; he was shocked he didn’t notice them sooner. The sight of it made his heart ache. Jeralt’s death had been a huge loss for everyone at Garreg Mach, those months ago, but for her most of all. “I am sure Bernadetta did not think any less of you,” he says.

“I know,” she replied lightly as she smoothed the kitten’s dark fur. Something about the sight of it filled his chest, tightening it and making it hard to breathe.

“It’s an ingenious gift, though, once you manage to tame the thing down” he managed. “That girl needs a dose of unconditional love.”

Byleth said nothing in response, content to focus on stroking the kitten, and Seteth was content to watch. They sat in companionable silence for a time.

“You seem to know what you’re doing with that cat,” Seteth said softly, not eager to disturb the cozy atmosphere. He leaned forward and rested his chin on the heel of his palm.

She nodded, scritching its very unhappy head. “We never stayed in one place for long, when I was small, but there were always strays wherever we ended up. I’ve always had a soft spot for them, I suppose.”

The professor stopped for a second and bit her lip in a rare display of emotion. Seteth sat up straighter.

Byleth met his gaze. “Dad used to make fun of me for it. He used to go on and on about how I’d catch one and never let go, no matter how hard they fought, no matter how badly they scratched. Guess I never felt it.” Her smile was still fond, but Seteth could hear the emotion in her voice.

The surge of pity he felt for her was immediate. In the weeks following Jeralt’s death, Byleth had been almost stubbornly normal. He knew from experience that she must have been struggling but he’d felt it wasn’t his place to pry. Maybe he’d been wrong. Her eyes looked so far away now, so entrenched in old memories.

“You must miss him.”

“Every day,” she agreed. Byleth slumped forward and relaxed her arms. Somehow, miraculously, the kitten had tired itself out and fallen into a fitful sleep.

“Seteth.” His eyes snapped to hers. “When you- when you lost…” she trailed off. He merely nodded in understanding. “How long did it take to feel normal again?”

And oh, how his chest ached for her.

Hesitantly he moved closer. “Byleth,” he started, placing a gentle hand on her cheek against his better judgement. This was highly inappropriate behavior between colleagues but… she was his friend, and he owed her some semblance of comfort.

“The pain I felt when it happened was indescribable. Were it not for Flayn, I am not sure I would have made it out... I miss her to this day.”

There were tears welling in her eyes. The sight of it only makes the ache grow. _Goddess above_ , he would give anything to ease her pain.

“It never goes away. Not completely. There will always be a part of you that feels lost.” A sniff. “But it gets easier to manage, I promise,” he says thickly.

She leaned into his hand, a single tear falling to the stone steps.

“Time heals all wounds,” she whispered. He nodded silently.

“That’s what I was afraid of,” Byleth said.

“I know,” he said empathetically. A pause. “Professor, if there is anything I can do to lessen your pain, say the word and I will be there.” He thumbed one of her tears away affectionately. “You are practically like family to Flayn and I, after all.”

Byleth looked away. “There is something you could do. Seteth waited for her to continue. “Would you mind just… staying with me? Only for a bit.”

“Of course,” he replied.

It would be hard (grief had never been easy) but she would make it through. Byleth was strong like that. It was a trait he greatly admired.

Slowly, silently, he removed the hand from her face and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She easily leaned into his embrace, and they settled into comfortable silence once more.

(The kitten’s sleepy purring was a welcome addition.)

### Notes:

it's done! oh my god. I've only written one fanfic ever, like 3 years ago, but I did it! I finished it and that's all that matters. Comments/constructive criticism is welcome! I would very much like to keep writing and improve. I was coming up with this as I wrote it and I think you can definitely tell haha. so that's one thing to work on. :) I am much better at drawing so you can follow me for that pretty much everywhere under the same username!


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